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Help me choose a fretless

jdaunt

jdaunt

Jun 30, 2016
844
2,034
Grand Blanc, MI
www.undauntedvisuals.com
#1
As a lockdown project i pulled the frets out of my Ibanez TMB100 that i never play anymore, and love it! But my work was pretty shoddy, so i’m looking to upgrade to a “real” fretless. Looking at the Squier Classic Vibe 60s fretless Jazz or the Fender Player Fretless Jazz Pau Ferro. Prefer the Polar White color option of the Fender, but wonder if the MIM is really worth the $300 more than the Squier-which i’ve read very good things about.
 
#2
Step 1 - Find one that has a neck profile that you already like.
That's pretty much all I got. At least that's the most important thing in my experience. Anything else is easy to change.
Between the MIM, Squier, MIJ, MIA, whatever, just play as many as you can. If a Squier comes at you with a really good neck I wouldn't think it is worth spending more unless there are other details you want. Play them all.
 
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#4
jdaunt said:
As a lockdown project i pulled the frets out of my Ibanez TMB100 that i never play anymore, and love it! But my work was pretty shoddy, so i’m looking to upgrade to a “real” fretless. Looking at the Squier Classic Vibe 60s fretless Jazz or the Fender Player Fretless Jazz Pau Ferro. Prefer the Polar White color option of the Fender, but wonder if the MIM is really worth the $300 more than the Squier-which i’ve read very good things about.
Click to expand...
sounds like you should play and wear out the one you crapped up until deserving an upgrade
 
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#6
There is a whole bunch of Squier CV fretless basses out there (Jazzes and Precisions) with really bad ebanol fingerboards - with deeply rippled surfaces and raised lines - so I would recommend try before you buy with those, and maybe be prepared to add a few $$ to the overall cost to get the fingerboard properly levelled...
 
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#7
Killing Floor said:
Step 1 - Find one that has a neck profile that you already like.
That's pretty much all I got. At least that's the most important thing in my experience. Anything else is easy to change.
Between the MIM, Squier, MIJ, MIA, whatever, just play as many as you can. If a Squier comes at you with a really good neck I wouldn't think it is worth spending more unless there are other details you want. Play them all.
Click to expand...
This is good advice. Play alot to find out what feels right to you.

That said, if forced to choose right now I'd definitely go with the Fender. I've been impressed with the quality of MIM Fender's these days.
 
#9
Killing Floor said:
Find one that has a neck profile that you already like.
Click to expand...
0000_1.jpg


OP, if the neck isn't right = your whole body will blame your left hand! good luck with your fretless quest! :thumbsup:
 
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#10
I'm partial to unlined fret boards for a couple of reasons. One, uprights, the original fretless basses, are unlined and that is what I learned on. Two, sooner or later a guitar player is going to question your intonation and point out that he can see you're off because you fingers aren't on the lines. It won't matter if you are dead on or not. With that said, I've looking real hard at this offering:

Ibanez Bass Workshop SRF705 Fretless Bass Guitar - Brown Burst Flat
 
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#11
i've tried the ebonal Sq ... wet sanded the grooves out .. not a big issue

last fretless neck i tried was a MiM Jazz ... very pretty lined Pau Ferro ( sp? )

to me , lines are a good tool for practicing and working on intonation ...
but playing , couldn't see them in most lighting situations ... side markers seem more important for a reference point .?!

Jazz neck might feel closer to the Ibby ..??
DSC01302.JPG
20200416_212307.jpg

just my 2 cents .. pearl block stickers look cool , but buzzed on fretless ..!
 
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#12
I've had several Fender MIM fretless basses, and own one still. I like them very much. They're stable, sound good, and have good resale value, which is important if you swap basses around; I keep coming back to them and my current one might be my favorite. The pao farro board seems very hard and shows no marks even after use with rounds. Just my two cents. I have been attracted to the Squier too but have never played one.
 
#13
DavC said:
i've tried the ebonal Sq ... wet sanded the grooves out .. not a big issue

last fretless neck i tried was a MiM Jazz ... very pretty lined Pau Ferro ( sp? )

to me , lines are a good tool for practicing and working on intonation ...
but playing , couldn't see them in most lighting situations ... side markers seem more important for a reference point .?!

Jazz neck might feel closer to the Ibby ..??
View attachment 3906195 View attachment 3906196
just my 2 cents .. pearl block stickers look cool , but buzzed on fretless ..!
Click to expand...

Hey you got a front on shot of that Sunburst Jazz with the cream pickups?

Supper uncanny but I just bought cream pickup covers to do the same to my sunburst fretless. Would love to see how it's going to end up!
 
#14
All of the Classic Vibe basses I've handled were consistently pretty decent, particularly for the price. Most of the Player series I've been around were much nicer all around (I know, to suggest that far more expensive instruments are superior to Squiers is heresy around here. I'll take my flogging now) than any non-Japanese Squier and in my opinion well worth the extra coin, but there are occasional stinkers (and standouts, for that matter) so try before you buy if you go that route. The Squiers are perfectly acceptable, though, so if you intend to hop it up after purchase and don't care about the name on the headstock, that could also be your best bet.
 
#15
I've owned a Squire fretless J for several years. Pix in the link below. Best tip/advice, from my experience, is attention to the ebanol fretboard. If buying used, pay close attention to the fretboard surface condition. If it was strung with round/wound strings and played hard, over time, the fretboard can get gnarly. When I bought mine new, it came with round/wound strings. Played it easy over a few weeks and started noticing "lines" appearing on the fretboard. That was the beginning of the fretboard problem. Then, restrung to flats and that corrected the problem. Scratches stopped. IMO the ebanol fretboard is much less, to no-damage, with flats. Another benefit of flats, on any fretless, is the fun, tactile experience of running fingers over a smooth string on a smooth fretboard. If you've ever ice skated, it's kinda like that, but with your fingers.

Squier Vintage Modified Jazz Bass Fretless 3-Color Sunburst AND Fender FB610 Gig Bag | Teddy's Gear Emporium | Reverb
 
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#20
Another vote here for Sire fretless, I have the vintage V7 and love it. Select the bridge pickup and boost that mid on the preamp and you have that Jaco sound in an instant! Andertons has a summer sale right now. I'd go for this one: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
 

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